October 21, 2008

Reporters Notebooks

Ken Goe, Oregonian: The real purpose of the Bowl Championship Series, which is foisted off on the American public as a way to determine a national champion? It has nothing to do with football. This is about the six power conferences and the BCS bowl games elbowing everybody else away from the postseason money and television exposure.

Ron Musselman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Penn State's Joe Paterno plans to get his sore right leg and troubled hip checked next week during the Nittany Lions' bye week. "I'm gonna take a day or two off and I'll let our doctors take a look at it and we'll see where we go from there."

Dwain Price, Fort Worth Star-Telegram: Mike Leach on computers: "I
just try to avoid computers as much as I can. Obviously, you need
somebody around that knows how to run a computer — and the video is on
computers — but to me, anything involving computers is very
frustrating, so I ignore it every step that I can. I don’t have any control over them. It’s not like I can send the repairman or somebody to go fix them."

Mike Hlas, Cedar Rapids Gazette: One week, two burials: Mack Brown approved a suggestion to bury the game ball
from Texas'' 45-35 win over Oklahoma on the practice field to help the
team forget its big victory and focus on the upcoming game Missouri.
No. 1 Texas then buried Mizzou, 56-31.

John Werner, Waco Tribune-Herald: Any team that goes unbeaten in the Big 12 is practically guaranteed a spot in the BCS title game. But running the table is harder than catching Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt.

Bob Clark, Eugene Register-Guard: Breaking down the Pacific 10 race.
Only Oregon State and Arizona control their destiny, and the Beavers,
with a victory over USC, have the inside track.

Ben Prather, FanBlogs: How do the conferences rate according to the BCS computers? The Southeastern is No. 1.

Eric Lacy, Detroit News: Mark Dantonio acknowledged that his Michigan State program is involved in an East Lansing Police Department assault investigation stemming from an off-field incident over the weekend. A Michigan State student-athlete, reported to be a hockey player, remains hospitalized because of a head injury after an assault early Sunday morning with another student-athlete at an off-campus residence.

Matt Krupnick, Contra Costa Times: Two California players were arrested on suspicion of robbery, three weeks after two assailants burst into a dormitory room and robbed the occupants at gunpoint.

Scott Wolf, Los Angeles Daily News: Rumors have started once again about Pete Carroll becoming coach of the San Francisco 49ers after the NFL team fired Mike Nolan.

Mick McGrane, San Diego Union-Tribune: Has San Diego State hit bottom? No, it may get worse.

Doug Bonham, Boulder Daily Camera: Former Colorado kicker Katie Hnida will be honored at a "celebration of survivors" being staged by a Boulder sexual-assault awareness and intervention group.